Writing Update: Finishing Volume 4 Edition

Today is the day that I have to submit Druid (The Orin Chronicles: Volume 4) to get it released on time. For anyone who’s interested, here is a breakdown of how I release a new volume of The Orin Chronicles every month.

At the beginning of every month I begin the writing for the new volume. Usually I only have a few vague ideas of the story I want to tell. The initial writing isn’t too difficult and within 8-10 days I’ve finished the first draft (12k-14k words). As the writing progresses I add new information to my top secret document that contains the secrets of the world of The Orin Chronicles as well as the history of what is happening and when. With only 3 volumes published so far I don’t usually run into lore issues, but with Volume 4 I found myself checking this document a lot more. Ending up with a plothole is something I very much do not want to do so I take this research seriously.

With the remaining days, usually 3-5, I then read through the story and edit as I go along. During this stage I go through and make sure the reading experience is pleasant and that the characters are developing and saying something about themselves. I also make sure to fill in any missed opportunities in the plot and this brings me up to the 16,000 words. The Glossary also gets written during this time and at the very end I write the Author’s Note, spell check, and then upload to Kindle.

Of course, with such a quick development period, there’s also tons of doubt. I’m always happy when I send it off for publishing, but that’s not enough to escape the doubt. I haven’t read Volume 1 since it was released and I don’t remember it entirely so I think “what if Volume 1 isn’t so great and people don’t become interested in the series?”. That’s one of the advantages to writing this type of story: the reader can jump in at many different points. With The Library Series, full-length books, I’m very careful and I’m a little less careful with The Orin Chronicles by design. I’ve watched many great TV series that have some sub-par episodes, but does that make me hate the series? No. I’m grateful that the large amount of content is being delivered to me quickly and I know most of the episodes are really good.

So, that’s what The Orin Chronicles is right now. A 13 volume monthly series with a new adventure each time (thus far) with a larger plot developing in the background. Even I don’t know exactly what will happen as we approach Volume 13, so I’m happy to continue writing this series and trying my best with it.